I picked up a paperback novel today cause it had nice SSTO craft on the cover. The is the development of such a craft and the support structures in the very near future ( Ie. 1999-2000) from Brazil without the support of the US-Goverment. Firestar by Micheal Flynn, is the books title - isbn 0-812-53006-3. This is good reading, and a good reminder of the dream of Real space travel. Ben.